Only 1 in 10 Italians think their dog is overweight, but the reality is far more worrying.
85% of those who own an overweight dog think it is normal weight and 4% even think that it weighs less than the average.
Fido likes chubby and it is not only us Italians who turn a blind eye to the flab of their beloved four-legged friends,
the phenomenon of pets that weigh too much is global
: on average, in Europe one dog out of two is overweight and one out of ten is even obese.
The perception of the appearance of pets was investigated in a full-bodied and curious research commissioned by an Italian brand specializing in pet food with menus developed with the advice of veterinarian nutritionists, Amusi.
Thus it happens that in summer on the beaches, during walks in the countryside or on mountain paths, Italians on vacation often drag on a leash dogs heated by record temperatures and fatigued by their own body weight accumulated during the winter.
The phenomenon had already been recorded in the summer of 2021 but shows no signs of diminishing.
On the contrary, we look at our pets with the eyes of love and they always appear perfect and beautiful.
Listening to the comments of relatives and friends of those who sport a dog that is rounder than the average, it seems that their appearance is even more appreciated so much that on social networks the photos and videos of our chubby pets who move in such a way are full of like. clumsy because they "make tenderness", as we read in the comments.
“If we, despite a worthy social campaign that promotes body positivity, still worry with the costume fitting, we often ignore the extra flab of our furry ones, - explain the Amusi analysts.
- Instead for them, even more than for us,
it is not a question of aesthetics but of health ”
.
In short, trust should not get fat.
To run for cover it would be enough to change some of our common behaviors such as providing our dogs with snacks-meals and food rewards several times a day, as well as making our four-legged friends do constant physical activity all year round.
In addition to putting them on a diet.
Says Costanza Delsante, veterinarian: “You need to be guided by experts to choose the right diet and, above all, not to use food as the only form of psychological reward.
There are in fact many ways to gratify your dog.
Feeding can be used as a cuddle, but only occasionally, or for example, during the training phase.
One of the main mistakes in the dog-owner relationship is to think that the
the only way to reward your pet is to give him something very tasty and, generally, very caloric.
Often, however, a gesture of attention towards our adventure companion is enough.
It should also be remembered that a balanced nutritional plan can include snacks, but their daily caloric intake should never exceed 10% of the energy supplied daily by the diet ".
The expert concludes: "it is also a question of what we feed them. The cheapest foods are often very rich in carbohydrates, often also enriched with flavor enhancers to make them irresistible, and in the protein part they are mainly composed of waste. The result is that the animal gets fat: just as those who ate only snacks bought at the discount would gain weight.